


Build me up

by NessDearies



Category: The Hobbit (Jackson Movies), The Hobbit - All Media Types
Genre: Architect Thorin, M/M, Modern AU, cute stuff, idk what to tag
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-01-18
Updated: 2015-03-11
Packaged: 2018-03-08 01:53:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 16,719
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3191144
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NessDearies/pseuds/NessDearies
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Thranduil is a 19 year-old who's quite bored with his life when his father decides to do some changes to their house and takes on an architect for the work. Changes are done, but not only to the house.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I don't really know where this is going but I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writting it !  
> Please note that English is not my first language so i apologize for any mistakes I made.  
> Also, reviews and kudos are greatly appreciated.

It has been a while now that Thranduil's father was talking about remodeling some parts of their house. He didn't know where that had came from, there wasn't anything wrong with their house. Everything was holding steady and they had changed most of the furniture in a year's range. Still, he wasn't surprised when he came down from his room into the living room and found his father sitting on the couch and going through yet another magazine. When he stepped off the stairs, Oropher looked up at him and smiled.  
“I didn't know you were home.”  
“Where did you think I'd be?”  
“I don't know, out with friends?”  
Thranduil scoffed at that.  
“Right.”  
“It's summer break, you should be out with friends.”  
Thranduil only rolled his eyes and walked to the open kitchen where he served himself a glass of water, then came back and sat besides his father.  
“What are you doing anyway?” he glanced at the open pages. “Kitchens?”  
“Yes, I think we'll do the kitchen first.”  
“Why?”  
“Why not? Wouldn't you like a brand new kitchen? I was thinking maybe changing to white marble counter tops would be great. What do you think?”  
His father turned to face him and Thranduil only shrugged. He didn't really care about their kitchen counter tops, but he still replied: “Maybe that would be great, yeah.”  
“Okay, how about that. Since you've done so well in school this year, I was thinking maybe, after the kitchen, we could also remodel your bedroom? I'll let you in charge of everything, I promise.”  
“Really?”  
“Yes, maybe you could even draw some plans if you want.”  
“Wow, thank you dad that's...”  
He didn't know what to say. He certainly hadn't saw that coming. But now that Oropher mentioned it, he could definitely do some changes in his room. And if he had the power to choose everything... Oh, he could already see all the ideas running in his head. He quickly hugged his father and went back upstairs to put everything onto paper.

A few days later, in the last hours of the afternoon, Thranduil was coming home from errands. When he walked into the house, his father was standing in the living room talking with another man. At the sound of his entrance, his father and the stranger turned to look at him.  
“Ah, Thranduil! This is my son Thranduil, Thranduil this is M. Oakenshield.”  
The dark haired man cleared his throat and hold out his hand. “Nice to meet you. Please, call me Thorin.”  
As he reached to shake his hand, Thranduil took in everything from the man standing on front of him; the long black curly hair, the toothy smile directed to him, the beard, the tightly fitting white shirt and black trousers he was wearing and most of all, the clear blue eyes looking back at him.  
“M. Oakenshield if the architect who's gonna work on the house.”  
“Oh, okay.”  
Thranduil realized he was still holding the man's hand and swiftly let it go with an apologetic smile. Thorin's eyes were still on him when Oropher spoke again.  
“Actually, it's great that you're here. I was wondering if you would be here tomorrow afternoon to let M. Oakenshield in? I'll be at work all day so I won't be.”  
Of course his father knew very well that he would be here but he guessed that he was trying to be polite, so Thranduil did the same and confirmed that yes, he would be here. He put the bad of groceries on the kitchen counter, then excused himself and took the stairs up to his room, not without taking another look at the architect.

The next day, Thranduil was on the couch reading when the door bell rang. It was 2PM on the dot. He got up off the couch and walked to the door, opening it to reveal the handsome architect. He caught himself staring at the man once again. Thorin was dressed more casually today, blue jeans and a black tee-shirt. His hair was tied in a loose ponytail. And always those deep blue eyes.  
Thorin smiled up to him and cleared his throat. “I can only do the work if you let me inside.”  
Thranduil blinked a few times. “What?” Then he realized he was standing in the way and stepped aside. “Sorry.” Thorin only smiled again and walked inside.  
“It won't take long today, I just have to take some measurements.”  
“Take all the time you need, I'll be there if you need anything.” And Thranduil sat back on the couch and grabbed his book again. Except he didn't really read, he just turned the pages mindlessly and watched Thorin moving around the kitchen from the corner of his eyes. At some point, the older man bent to reach for something and Thranduil couldn't help staring at the man's butt. When he realized what he was doing, he moved his eyes back to the book he was holding.  
When he looked back, Thorin had moved to the counter and leaned onto it to write something. Thranduil gave up and walked towards him. He stood behind him and looked above his shoulder.  
“What are you doing?”  
“Drawing some more detailed plans for my crew.”  
“Your crew? Are you like the supervisor?”  
“I guess so. I prefer to think that we're a team. We work together.”  
“Are they friends?”  
For some reason, he couldn't stop from asking questions to the other man. He just wanted to know.  
“Yes, we've known each other for a while now.”  
“Did you knew them before?”  
“Yes, we studied together. That's why I picked them when I started my company.”  
“You must've started young. What are you? Like, thirty?”  
Thorin laughed. “Do you want my resume?”  
Thranduil blushed and turned his head.  
“Sorry I shouldn't ask such things. I'll stop bothering you.”  
He started to walk away but a hand on his arm stopped him.  
“You're not bothering me at all, I was just joking. And I assure you I'm old enough.”  
His eyes sparkled when he said that, like he was laughing at an inside joke. Then his face turned serious again and he removed his hand from the teenager's arm. Thranduil felt his skin tingle at the loss of contact.  
“Actually, I think I'm finished for today. I have everything I needed, so I'm gonna head home.” He walked around the kitchen to gather some things he had scattered around. “You can tell your dad I'll be back first thing tomorrow morning.” He then walked to the hall and turned around to face Thranduil. “I'll see you tomorrow then.” And he left the house.  
The only thing that crossed Thranduil's mind was that he weirdly looked forward to it.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys ! So here it is, chapter two. I have a few already written and I wanted to post this one to thank you all for your comments ! You're all so nice, just thank you.  
> Hope you like this one and stick with me :D

The next day, Thranduil woke up at 9AM with a smile on his face. He quickly got prepared, taking a short shower then brushing his hair and putting on slim jeans and a gray tee-shirt. He checked himself in the mirror one last time before walking down the stairs. As he expected, Thorin was already here, but this time there was three other men with him. Still, his eyes were focused on Thorin, who looked pretty much like he had yesterday. His hair was again gathered in a loose ponytail and his outfit was almost the same except he now wore a tool belt around his hips. Thranduil stopped his analysis when Thorin saw him.

“Oh, good morning. Sorry if we woke you up.”

“No, don't worry you didn't. Actually I would have gotten up earlier if I could have.”

He started to walk towards the fridge -the only part of the kitchen that still contained food- and took a look at the other men standing in the room.

“Hi everyone, I'm Thranduil.”

Thorin seemed to realize that they weren't alone only then.

“Yes, right. This is my crew; there's Dwalin, Nori and Bifur.” he pointed to each one of them as he recited the names.

“Nice to meet you all. Don't mind me, I'm just grabbing something to eat and I'm out of here.”

He pulled out a yogurt from the fridge then closed the door before walking back to the living room. However he stopped in his tracks as a thought crossed his mind.

“Have you seen my father this morning?”

“Yes, I have. He was leaving when I got here. He asked me to tell you that he will be at work all day and would come home late. Sorry.”

“Don't be sorry, I'm used to it.” He shrugged and slumped on the couch. “He's almost never home anyway.”

During all morning, Thranduil sat in the living room, with a book open in his hands but never reading any word written on the pages. He was too focused on the man working next to him. When he heard the loud voice of said working-man, a few hours later, Thranduil jumped slightly.

“Have you guys seen my hammer?”

“Have you checked your tool belt?” the one that Thranduil thought was Nori replied.

“Yes, I remembered to check the only place it should be, thank you very much.”

Thranduil didn't realize he had let out a chuckle at the man's answer until two pairs of eyes settled on him. He quickly raised his book in front of his face and pretended to be concentrated on his reading. Hiding didn't work obviously and he heard footsteps coming up to him. Then the voice came out again, this time low and _very_ close.

“Are you being too distracted?”

Thranduil gulped at the question. Had Thranduil remarked all the staring? He knew he shouldn't have stayed here but he couldn't just walk away from such a view. What would he do now? Would Thorin ask him to stop? To leave? Maybe he would quit the job. Oh no, his father would be mad. He looked up to see Thorin standing in front of him, arms crossed, waiting for an answer. The only thing Thranduil could think of was to fake incomprehension.

“Uh?”

“You've been on the same page of this book for hours now.”

“No it's just that I, uh, I'm just – The book is...”

Thorin seemed amused by his embarrassment and loss of words. But thankfully, another voice came in and put an end to the boy's suffering who sighed in relief.

“Hey boss, can we take break? We wanted to go grab lunch.”

Thorin turned around and looked at his crew  standing in front of him with pleading eyes, like they were asking for mercy.

“Yes, of course, but don't ever call me boss again.”

“As you wish, my King.”

Thorin rolled his eyes and started to walk back to the kitchen.

“Aren't you coming?”

“No, I think I'll just stay here and continue the work. All those cabinets are not gonna tear out themselves.”

“Come on, we've been working all morning, you can take a break! We were thinking we could go to that restaurant you like. Uh, Gandalf's?”

“Yeah, if you don't come for the food then at least think about that hot waiter you like.”

Thorin seemed very embarrassed at his friend's statement and looked back at Thranduil quickly. Thranduil, him, was just very interested in the turn that things were taking.

“No really, I want to finish this today. Go eat, I'll be fine.”

“Alright, but you know, you're never going to meet anyone if you keep working all the time.”

“Well, maybe I don't want to meet anyone. I don't have time for a boyfriend right now.”

Thranduil's breath caught in his throat after that. Both for the fact that Thorin had used the word “boyfriend” which meant that Thranduil may have a chance with the man and for the fact that he had also said he wasn't interested in that right now.  In a few second's range, his mind had found hope and this hope had been destroyed. And while Thranduil was having an emotional crisis, Thorin just pushed the  three  men out with an annoyed  “Just stop worrying about my love life and go!”.

When his friends were finally out of sight and the door closed, Thorin turned around and sighed. Glancing at Thranduil he saw that the guy was deep in thought and decided not to bother him any more. He returned to his work in the kitchen.

Thranduil was relieved that Thorin had got back to work without pursuing their earlier conversation. He realized that what he was doing was kinda creepy and weird but it seemed he just couldn't look away when the other man was in the room. He had never wanted another man like he wanted him. Of course, he already had sex with another man, he knew about his sexuality for a while now, but they were all losers that had taken advantage of him and his lack of self-esteem. This was different. Thranduil was older now and Thorin was a _man_ , not a random inexperienced teenage boy.

Thranduil was suddenly interrupted in his thoughts by a loud noise. He looked up to see what had happened. Thorin was looking at his hand and let out a low “Fuck.” Automatically, Thranduil got up and went to him.

“What happened?”

“I just cut my finger on some exposed nail. It's alright, I'll just go and get a bandage from my truck.”

He started to move towards the door but Thranduil stopped him.

“No, wait, I'll just get you one. Stay there a second.”

He ran up the stairs and came back a few seconds after with a small first-aid kit.

“Come sit here.”

The architect obeyed and sat down next to the blonde that was rummaging through the kit. He finally took out a small bottle, some cotton and a band-aid. Thorin moved his hand to grab the things but Thranduil didn't let him.

“Let me.”

He didn't exactly know why but he let Thranduil take care of his injured finger and just watched him. He had a concentrated look on his face, his eyebrows frowned and lips slightly pursed. Some strands of his hair were now falling in front of his face. Thorin instinctively grabbed them to put them behind his ear. The younger one stopped moving and looked up to him. He only smiled a little and apologized. Thranduil got back to the wounded finger.

“Here, you're all good.”

“Thank you, Thranduil.”

Thranduil realized it was the first time that the brunet had used his name.

“Anytime, Thorin. But don't make it a habit.”

Thorin chuckled and his eyes set on the book that the young man had been “reading” all morning and he picked it up. “What were you reading anyway?”

Thranduil watched the man going through some of the pages.

“That's just some artsy stuff.”

“Yeah, I see that. So, are you an artist?”

“I wish. I really like arts but my dad wouldn't let me study it. So I'm in law school instead.”

“Wow, that's a huge difference.”

“Yeah, well, he thinks it's too hard to have an artistic career. He's not wrong though. And I can still do it as a hobby. Plus, law school is not that hard for me.”

He smiled and looked to Thorin.

“What about you, have you always wanted to be an architect?”

“Yes, I think so. I don't remember wanting to do anything else. It's what I like.” he shrugged.

“That's nice. Wasn't it too hard?”

“No. I mean, the studies weren't. When I decided to start my own business, it was hard at first, but now everything is great.”

There was a moment of silence where they were just looking at each other and smiling. Then reality caught up to them when Thorin's friends entered the house in a huge mess of loud laughs. Thorin quickly got up to his feet and walked towards them.

“Okay guys, let's get back to work.”

 

A few more hours passed without much happening. The crew finished putting down the kitchen cabinets and Thranduil varied between reading and watching them work. When they started to pack everything, he got up and walked to the kitchen.

“Just put everything in the truck, guys. I'll deal with that later.”

They exited the house and Thranduil accompanied Thorin to the door.

“Are you coming tomorrow?”

“No, I don't usually work on week-ends. But you can tell your dad I'll be here on Monday.”

“Sure, I will. See you on Monday then.”

Thorin went to his truck.

“Yes, it was nice talking to you.”

He got in and started the engine before driving away. When the car was out of sight, Thranduil got back inside the house with a grin on his face. He sighed when he realized he would have to wait two days to see the man again and went to his room. It wasn't late and he hadn't got much to do now, so he just continued to work on the drawings for his room. However, his mind wandered to Thorin again and he grabbed another piece of paper. He started to draw the other man's face but got frustrated when he couldn't catch the features right. He left everything on his desk and went back downstairs to order some take out. He finished the evening eating Chinese in front of the TV.

 


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not entirely sure of what I'm doing but you guys seem to like it so, here's a new chapter.  
> Thank you again for all the nice comments, it's what keeps me going!  
> Love you all!

_Thranduil was sitting on the couch next to Thorin, working on cleaning the small wound on his finger when he felt a hand brush against his cheek, putting some of his hair behind his ear. He looked up to see that the dark-haired man was scrutinizing his face. Their eyes met and a small smile crept on the architect's lips. Unconsciously, Thranduil li_ _c_ _ked his own dry lips. The man in front of him watched his movement and inhaled deeply, then began to slowly lean forward, eyes still on Thranduil's lips. The younger one moved too, and after what felt like ages, their lips finally met._ _It was just a touch at first, testing, but when each one was sure the other one knew what they were doing, their lips began to move. Thranduil let go of Thorin's injured hand to put his behind the man's neck. The architect put his now free hands on the younger man's hips and pulled him closer. Their kiss was now all tongue and quick breaths, each one trying to get closer to the other one's body. Thorin put one of his hand on Thranduil's lower back and started to push him back into the couch without breaking their kiss. The blonde was now fully lying down, with the stronger man on him, straddling his hips. He leaned down and started to leave a track of wet kisses down his neck and his shoulder and …_

“Come on, sleepy head, it's time to wake up.”

Thranduil groaned in his pillow. “The fuck?”

“It's late enough, get out of bed and try to do something of your day.”

He moaned and turned to lie on his front (mostly to hide his boner from his father).

“What time is it?”

“It's 11AM. I know you stayed up late last night, but don't spend the rest of your day in bed, please.”

“Why not?”

His father ignored his question.

“I'm leaving, I'm going to the club, meet with some friends.”

For the first time, Thranduil turned his head to his father. He was already dressed with tidy hair and everything. Clearly about to go. And he was looking at him with a strange look.

“Are you okay?”

“Yes, why?”

“I don't know you're all sweaty and red.”

If it was possible, Thranduil blushed even more.

“Yeah, I'm fine. It's just – It was hot last night.”

“I didn't realize.” He thought about it for a bit and Thranduil only prayed that he wouldn't realize he was lying. “Maybe we should install air conditioning in your room. I'll ask M. Oakenshield if he could.”

“Do you think he would?”

“For what we're paying him, I think he doesn't really care.”

“Okay.”

Thranduil put his head into his pillow again.

“I won't come home until late afternoon I think. You'll be okay?”

“Go, I'll be fine.”

“Alright. But don't stay in bed!”

And with that his father finally left his bedroom. Thranduil sighed and turned to lie on his back again. With hands under his head, he just stared at the ceiling for a few minutes before finally getting up. He put on an old oversized white sweater and sweatpants, put some gathered his hair in a high bun, and strolled down the stairs to the kitchen. He yawned loudly and moved to make himself a coffee. But the coffeemaker didn't seem to want to do its job and he started to despair. After a few groans and punches, the machine finally turned on and his cup started to fill. While waiting for it to finish, he searched around the few places that were still containing food, he found a box of cookies behind a pile of canned food. As he was walking towards the couch with his steaming hot cup of coffee in hand, the door bell rang. He jumped at the sound and some of the coffee landed on his clothes. He cursed and set the cup on the coffee table before walking towards the door, grumbling about the someone that was behind it.

Except he didn't know who it was behind the door and when he opened it to find Thorin, he froze for a few seconds, wide-eyed and mouth hanging open. Then he slammed the door shut. He turned around, back against the door, then rushed to the mirror on one of the hall's walls to take a look at himself. It was awful. He desperately tried to tidy his hair with his hands, slightly rearranged his clothes but it was hopeless. And when he realized what he had done, he hit himself on his forehead. _What the fuck dude?_ _Did y_ _ou_ _really just_ _slammed the door to his face?_

On the other side of the wooden door, Thorin stood awkwardly, not knowing what to do. He had just had the time to catch a glimpse of the younger man before it was replaced by the sight of the closed door. He wondered if he should knock again or just leave. Maybe he wasn't welcome? After all, he had said he wouldn't come today. As he prepared to turn around and leave, the door opened again.

“Hi.”

The younger man was standing in the doorway, one hand over his arm and smiling awkwardly.

“Hey.” Thorin just responded with a huge grin.

“Sorry about that, I just-”

He didn't really had an explanation, so he stopped there and looked down to his feet. Thorin only chuckled because he didn't really need an explanation. He could see why Thranduil had reacted like this even though he couldn't quite understand. He looked nice, messy and relaxed but really good. He wasn't about to tell him that however.

“So, what brings you here? I thought you weren't working today.”

“I'm not, I just wanted to drop these for your father.” He held up some blueprints and gave them to Thranduil. “It's just some plans for the kitchen. I wanted his confirmation that this was what he wanted.”

“Oh, okay I'll give him.”

He took the blueprints and put them aside in the hall. When he set his eyes on Thorin again, he realized that he was so self-aware he hadn't even paid attention to him. He was dressed with a white tee-shirt, a black leather jacket and black jeans. He looked stunning, not like him who was dressed like a homeless person. He closed his arms around his chest instinctively, in a pathetic attempt to hide himself.

Thorin smiled up to him as if to reassure him. And that's when Thranduil's mind decided to play with him and images from his previous dream flooded his head. His breath caught and he started blushing. _Now is not the time to think about that._ He closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths. He opened them again to face a worried looking Thorin.

“Are you okay?”

“Um, yes. Was there something else?”

“No it's all I came here for.”

That wasn't true. There was another reason Thorin was here, and that reason was standing in front of him.

“Just tell your dad to call me when he can.”

“I will.”

“See you on Monday then.”

And with a small nod he left.

Thranduil got back inside the house. He hesitated a bit in the living room, trying to fight the urge to get back into bed. He sighed and sat on the couch, sipping on his now almost cold coffee and biting in a cookie. A thought crossed his mind and he quickly climbed up the stairs and grabbed his laptop before going back to the couch.

While he continued to take his breakfast-lunch (it was almost midday now), he started a google search. Something in his mind told him it was weird, but that didn't stop his fingers from typing “Thorin Oakenshield” in the search bar. He didn't know why he was doing that, he tried to convince himself that it was because he had nothing else to do, but when the results page appeared it was clear it wasn't just that.

The first result was the page of Thorin's business, explaining some things like his work, his qualifications etc. On one of the pages, Thranduil found a picture of the architect with his crew and downloaded it. He continued his search for a while and only stopped when he thought there was nothing more he could find. His search had allowed him to find a few pictures of the man which he could use as reference for his drawing. And that's what Thranduil did for the rest of the afternoon.

 

When his father came home, he found Thranduil in his room, sitting at his desk, headphones with loud music in his ears. He seemed concentrated on something so Oropher decided not to bother him.

Thranduil came out of his room an hour later and joined his father in his study. He dropped the blueprints on the massive wooden desk.

“What is it?”

“Thorin came by earlier to drop these for you.”

Oropher took the prints and looked at them quickly. Thranduil got behind him and watched the plans.

“It looks great to me.”

“Yes well, he wanted to be sure that's what you wanted. He asked that you called him to confirm.”

“I'll do it when I'm finished with all of this.”

He gestured to a stack of paper which was standing at his right.

“I could do it if you want.”

“Uh?” his father looked up to him.

“The phone call. I can call him if you want. It won't take long.”

“That'd be great, thank you. Wait, I'll give you the number.”

His father took out his phone and searched through his contacts, then wrote the number on a small piece of paper that was lying around and gave it to Thranduil.

“Do you like him?”

Thranduil was put out by the question.

“What?”

“Thorin, do you like him?”

“He's nice.”

“Good.”

“How's that?”

“We don't know how long he's gonna be around, you know? With the kitchen, then your room, he's gonna be here for weeks, maybe more. I'm just making sure there aren't any troubles with you.”

“There's not.”

“Good. What do you want to eat tonight?”

“I don't know, whatever.”

And with that he left his father and went back to his room.

He sat on his bed and typed the number in his phone. He hesitated a few seconds before pressing the 'call' button. After a few rings, Thorin's voice came to his ear.

“Hello?”

“Yes, hi. It's Thranduil.”

“Thranduil?” He seemed surprised but happy. “Why are you calling? Did something happen?” Now he was panicked.

“No, I'm just calling about the prints you left earlier. My dad was too busy so I volunteered.”

“Right, the prints. So, did he like them?”

“Yes, it's perfect. He doesn't want to change anything.”

“That's great.” He seemed relieved which surprised Thranduil.

“You shouldn't have worried. You're obviously really good at what you're doing.”

“Thank you, it's always nice to hear things like that.”

“You're welcome.”

There was a bit of silence where Thranduil tried to think of something else to say, anything really, as long as it would make the call last longer. Then, Thranduil heard some childish screams in the phone and Thorin sighing.

“Was there anything else?”

Thranduil wanted to ask what was happening but understood that Thorin had something else to do. That made him a bit sad, reminding him that the man had a life outside work and that Thranduil wasn't part of it. He replied anyway.

“No, that's all. See you Monday.”

“Yes, have a good night.”

And he hung up.

 


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys ! So sorry that this chapter took so long to come but school got in the way (like it always does). I know this one is short but I promise the next one is longer and I'll post it this weekend !  
> Hope you still like all of this.  
> Thank you for the comments and kudos !

On Monday morning, Thranduil was getting dressed in his bedroom when someone knocked on the door. As he was finishing to button his red plaid shirt, he shouted “Come in!”. When he looked up to see Thorin standing at his door, he froze then shook his head.

“Sorry I thought it would be my dad.”

“I should've said it was me.”

“Don't worry, what can I help you with?”

“Actually, I'm the one who's here to help you.”

Thranduil looked at him questioningly.

“Your father told me that you were thinking about installing air conditioning in your room?”

He blushed to his ears and tried desperately not to think about that again.

“Right. I don't know why we didn't do it earlier. I guess we never thought about it.”

“Well, that's probably a good idea. It's true it must be really hot in here sometimes.”

“Yes, right.”

“Anyway, I don't see why there would be any problem with that so we can do the installation whenever you want.”

Thorin was watching everything around him, taking in all the information he could get from the bedroom. The room wasn't really tidy but wasn't messy either. There was a mirror in one of the corners, next to a huge dressing. He saw many many drawings scattered all around the desk. He wanted to get closer and look at them but thought it wasn't something he could do. He looked at Thranduil again.

“Did my dad tell you about my bedroom?”

Thorin frowned, not understanding.

“I guess he didn't. We were thinking maybe you could do my bedroom after the kitchen.”

“Oh, okay. No, your father didn't tell me about that.”

“Would it be possible?”

“Yes, of course. What do you want to do exactly?”

“Change everything I think. Like the furniture, and the color of the walls. We were thinking maybe you could help with all of that. If you want, of course. I understand it's not really your job but...”

“No, there's no problem, I can definitely do it.”

Thranduil was very happy to hear that. Since his father had told him about his idea, Thranduil had almost planned every change he wanted, and sketched everything. He walked to his desk and gathered some of them and turned to Thorin.

“I did some sketches if you want to take a look. It's not as good as yours but...”

“Let me see that.”

Thorin took the stack of paper and watched everything carefully.

“That's really good actually.”

“You think so?”

“Yes. But from what I see, it's mostly decoration that you want.”

“Yes, that's why I want help. I was thinking that you could do the painting, and like assemble the furniture while I'll do all the decorating thing.”

“So we'd work together?”

“Yes.”

They both smiled to the other at the perspective.

“Well, I think that's really great.”

“When do you think we can start?”

“I think we'll finish removing the kitchen first, then we could do both your room and the kitchen at the same time. Since we have to wait for the counter tops, all we can do in the kitchen is install the new cabinets. So I'll split my time between doing that with my crew and working on your room with you.”

There was a huge grin on Thranduil's face that just wouldn't go away, even when Thorin had left the room and for all the days that followed. The perspective of working with Thorin was just a source of happiness for the young man who find himself waking up earlier and spending more time working on sketches for his room. Actually, a kind of routine had taken place during the week. Thranduil would wake up and get ready then spend the morning in the living room, always watching Thorin working but pretending to do something else (like reading, being on his computer, drawing, watching TV). Then, in the afternoon, he would either go to his room and work on his sketches or go out.

On Thursday however, Thranduil started to suffer from the lack of interaction with the older man. It was a particularly hot day, and Thorin had been sweating all morning, his white tank top clinging to his torso. So Thranduil took the opportunity to approach him as he was kneeling on the floor, working on some kind of pipes. Thranduil leaned on a wall next to him.

“So... You look kinda hot.”

There was a silence, then Thranduil gasped and looked away wide-eyed, realizing the meaning of what he'd said.

“Sorry, that's not – I didn't mean it like that. I was – I was talking about the temperature. I was saying hot as in warm like...”

Thorin was looking at him with an amused smile.

“Oh god. Do you want a drink?”

He got up and faced the flustered blonde.

“Yes, I would like that, thank you.”

Thranduil sighed and went to serve two glasses of iced tea. He came back and held one to Thorin who was still amused at the boy's embarrassment.

“I'm sorry again, I didn't mean it like that.”

“No, I get it, you don't think I'm attractive, that's okay.”

He started to blush again, stumbling on his words.

“I didn't say that either, I just – I...”

“Relax, I'm joking with you.”

A small silence settled between them as they were each sipping on their drinks until Thorin interrupted it.

“Can I ask you something?”

“Yes.”

“Don't take it the wrong way, you don't bother me or anything. It's just that I noticed that, since I've started working here, you were always home. I'm just wondering why? I mean, you surely have something better to do.” he hesitated before continuing “A girlfriend that wants to see you maybe?”

Thranduil looked up at that and searched the man's face for any trace of mockery. He only saw true interest. He sighed before answering.

“No, there's no girlfriend. There never was.”

He hoped that he had been clear enough. After all, he already knew about the other man's sexuality, it was only fair that he told him about his.

“What about you? Is there someone waiting for you at home?”

“No, there isn't. Well, not like that at least.”

“What do you mean?”

“I do have people waiting for me at home but no boyfriend. Not anymore.”

A sad look passed on his face and Thranduil knew better than to ask about that last part. So he focused on the first part of Thorin's sentence.

“So who are they?”

“Uh?”

“The people waiting for you, who are they?”

“Oh.” Thorin retrieved his smile and Thranduil was relieved. “I'm talking about my nephews and my sister.”

“Really? You're leaving with them?”

“Yes, I know it's a bit weird. It was supposed to be temporary but we're kinda like a family now.”

That's when Thranduil remembered the screams he had heard when on the phone with Thorin.

“Oh, I remember I thought I heard children when I was talking to you on the phone.”

“Yes, that was my nephews, Kili and Fili. They're respectively 6 and 8 and they are the best. They're my sister's children, Dis.”

“You seem very fond of them.”

“They're just adorable, all three of them. I feel very lucky to have them.”

Thorin looked so happy right now, talking about his family, that Thranduil wanted it to last forever. He also wanted to meet those people that seemed to brighten Thorin so much. But their conversation was ended by Oropher who was coming in.

“Well, I'd better get back to work. Thanks for the drink.”

They exchanged another smile and Thranduil left to go to his room. He played the conversation over and over again in his head for hours. Their exchanges always let him pumped up but also each time more impatient for the next one.

 


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys ! So here is the new chapter as promised !  
> I'm not a huge fan of this one but I know I really like what's coming after this chapter so ;)   
> Also, I know that some people don't like Tauriel but I didn't try to stay true to the character AT ALL here.  
> Anyway, thank you so much for all your kind comments. After I read them the other day I wrote a whole chapter because I was so excited to share more with you !  
> But enough of me, let's get back to the story !  
> Hope you like it ! :D

Saturday afternoon, Thranduil had decided to go out and meet with a friend he hadn't seen in a while to catch up. Tauriel was a girl he had met in high school and immediately connected with. She was strong and didn't take shit from anyone but unfortunately had been unlucky in love all her life. Well, it was until she had met this new guy apparently. It was one of the reasons for their meeting, she wanted to tell him everything. And since it was the week-end, which meant no Thorin at home, Thranduil had accepted. He had gave her the address of his favorite coffee shop and told her to meet him there for lunch. He had wanted to walk to the shop since it wasn't that far, and that way he could enjoy the summer air. But because of that, he got there almost half an hour early.

He ordered a latte and sat at the counter, then pulled out his phone to pass the time. He started to go through his gallery of pictures. There were a lot of selfies, alone and with friends, some quite old and some rather recent. There were some old family photos he had scanned. There were pictures of nature he liked to take from time to time. And there were the few pictures he had found of Thorin. Unconsciously, he had stopped on one of them and was now staring at the man's smiling face. It got him to smile too, but he was just looking like an idiot smiling at his phone.

He jumped and almost dropped his latte when he heard the low and quite unmistakable voice near.

At first, he thought it was just his imagination but when he looked up, there he was. Thorin was a few steps away from him, ordering something. Thranduil's breath caught in his throat and he didn't know what to do, so he just unlocked his phone and started to mindlessly look through his files again.

Thorin stepped aside as he was told to wait for his order and looked around him when he spotted a familiar silhouette sitting on a stool. He started to walk towards him and greeted him.

“Hi.”

Thranduil raised his blue eyes to Thorin's.

“Hey.”

“How are you today?”

“I'm fine, thank you. I'm actually waiting for a friend. What are you doing here? I come quite often and I've never seen you here before.”

“Oh no, I just stopped by to order coffees for me and Dis. She's waiting outside with the kids.”

He pointed to the door were a small dark-haired woman was waiting with two little boys clinging at her legs.

“We promised to take them to the park, so.”

“Yeah, I see.”

A waitress stopped in front of them and gave Thorin two cups and a definitely too insistant look with her brightest smile.

“Do you want anything else?”

“No, thank you.”

He had barely set eyes on her and she was obviously pissed. The all thing amused Thranduil a lot.

“Guess, I'll just go then. It was nice running into you.”

“You too. Have a nice day!”

They exchanged a last smile and Thranduil watched him leave. He was so into the conversation with Thorin that he hadn't realized he had been joined.

“Enjoying the view?”

He turned around so quickly that his hair flew behind him, slapping his friend in the face.

“Oh my god, you scared me so much!”

“It's so good to see you too Thranduil.”

They both laughed loudly and Thranduil pulled Tauriel in a tight hug.

“Okay, let me go now before you break my bones.”

He laughed again. “You know very well I'm not strong enough for that.”

“You're right. I'll break your arms if you do anyway.”

She gathered her red hair in a high ponytail, then turned to the barrista to order two lattes.

“So, I see you're having fun without me.” She said to Thranduil. He looked at her puzzled.

“What are you talking about?”

“Come on, you were totally checking out this guy's ass!”

“Oh that. That wasn't – He's – I don't.” He sighed then turned to stare at her. “Aren't we here to talk about you anyway? Or rather about that mysterious perfect guy?”

“Yes, you're right let's talk about me for a change.”

He rolled his eyes but his smile grew even wider. He had missed his constantly overexcited friend. They ordered some food and moved to a table near the windows.

 

“Okay, so who is he?”

“His name is Legolas, he's blonde, blue eyes and – oh my god. I never noticed but you two kinda look the same.”

She took her phone out of her purse and unlocked the screen. Then she turned it to show the wallpaper picture (a selfie of the two of them making faces) to Thranduil.

“Look!”

It was true, they looked like they could be family. Which they weren't for sure. Thranduil was an only child and didn't have any cousins. That he knew of at least.

“Anyway, he's really nice and smart and I really love him.”

“Well, all I wish for you is that it works well.”

“Thank you.”

Their food came shortly after that and the conversation drifted a bit. They talked about old shared friends, studies, their projects, families... Thranduil didn't really know how, but they ended up talking about Thorin again. He explained that the man was doing some work at his house and that they just ran into one another.

“Come on, it wasn't just that. There's something between you two.”

“No there isn't.”

“You gotta be blind not to see it. The way you were looking at each other? If you could've taken your clothes off right then and there, you would've.”

Thranduil blushed again. But then Tauriel's words sunk deeper and he realized she was talking about both of them.

“Wait, him too?”

“What?”

“He was – he looked at me like that too?”

“Yes! How come you never saw that before?”

“I don't know. How come you saw that at all?”

“Maybe because I've seen that look so much in my life. I guess I am just oversensitive to that kind of stuff.”

“Well, that's a good thing right now. Are you really sure?”

“From what I've seen, that's what I think. But you're the one in the best place to judge.”

Thranduil thought about that during the rest of their meeting and the rest of the weekend. Did Thorin really like him? And if he did, what could he do? Did they even have a chance? The only conclusion he came to was that he couldn't do anything just now. He decided that the best thing to do was to wait and see. He had never been the one to take the first step anyway. But that wouldn't mean he wouldn't pay more attention to catch any sign that Tauriel had been right. If there was any chance that something was indeed between them, he would catch it and do as much as he could. But only then. Before that, nothing had to change, from him at least.

 

Monday came fast, but not as fast as Thranduil had wished. He had waited for today with both impatience and anxiety. He had been afraid that Tauriel's words would have changed something even though he didn't want them to. When the door bell finally rang, in the first hours of the afternoon, a smile crept on Thranduil's face. He rushed down the stairs and opened the door to Thorin, whom he had the nice surprise to find alone.

“Hello. You're alone today?”

“Hi. Yes, I thought today I could install the air conditioning in your bedroom and I didn't need help for that so they were pleased to learn they had the day off.”

“Great.”

He stepped aside and let Thorin in, then they went up to the bedroom.

“Do you want me to leave you to work or?”

“No you can stay if you want. Just, keep doing what you were doing. Don't mind me.”

Thranduil was sure as hell not going to do that. He sat on his bed, back against the headboard, and picked up the drawing he had started this morning. He was mindlessly working on it while looking at the busy man. Time passed fast, as it always did when they were in this situation. Thranduil had lost track of it and was just drawing nonsense when a ring tone startled them both. Thorin got down of his footstool and picked up his phone. Thranduil raised himself a bit and listened carefully.

“Hello? … Yes, Dis. What's going on? … Okay … What do you want me to do?” He glanced at Thranduil who just smiled back at him. “Alright, I'll see what I can do … Don't worry … Love you too.” He hung up and sighed.

“Is something wrong?”

“Nothing, it was just my sister. She called because she is looking after the kids but she has to leave soon, so she wanted to know if I'd be here tonight to watch them.”

“Oh, everything's great then?”

“I think so. It's just that I-”

“What?”

“You're gonna find this silly.”

“I promise I won't.”

“I'm kinda scared of looking after the kids.”

Thranduil laughed.

“Is that so? I thought you were living with them, is that the first time you have to do it?”

“No, it's not but I'm always worried that something will happen and then Dis will hate me for the rest of my life. When she's here, at least, I'm not the only one responsible for them.”

Thranduil thought about it for a while.

“So … Would it be better if you had someone with you?”

“I don't know … I guess.” He shrugged. “But nobody's here to help me.”

“I'm here.”

The words left his mouth before he even had the chance to think about keeping them in. He blushed slightly and lowered his head.

“I mean, if you want to, I could help you. Kids usually like me, I don't know why.”

He raised his head again and set eyes on Thorin's smiling face.

“I would really like that, thank you. Actually, I think I'm done here and I could really use a shower right now.”

He looked down his sweaty body and Thranduil's eyes followed. He tried very hard not to think about Thorin in the shower but the image still popped in his mind and he bit his lip.

“Do you need something before we leave or?”

Thranduil looked around the room and only grabbed his phone, then got up on his feet and took a look at himself in the mirror. _This will have to do I guess._

“I'm all set.”

“Good, let's go then.”

Thranduil grabbed the house keys and followed Thorin outside. He closed the door and walked to Thorin's truck where the man was waiting for him. When he reached the passenger's door, Thorin held it open for him. Thranduil laughed.

“Wow, such a gentleman. How come you're single, really?”

Thorin gave him a half-smile but didn't answer. He closed the door then moved to the driver's side and they drove off. Thranduil picked up his phone and sent a quick text to his dad, telling him that he was out and didn't know when he'd come back, then he looked out the window.

 


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys ! Thank you again to anyone who left kudos and comments, it's what keeps me going ! :D  
> The next chapter should be up on friday, until then, enjoy !

The drive wasn't long but it had been long enough for Thranduil to start worrying about a lot of things. After all, they were driving to Thorin's house, he was kind of going to meet his family and spend _the evening with him._ _At his house. With his nephews_. When they got there, Thranduil was sure that pretty much every scenario of what could go wrong had played in his head. He was more tense than ever when the car stopped and Thorin got out and opened the car door for him. _What have I gotten myself into?_

He stepped out of the car and took a look at his surroundings. Thorin's neighborhood was nice, a bit out of town but clearly calm and family-friendly.

“Have you been here before?”

Thranduil turned to face Thorin.

“No, but it seems nice and quiet.”

“It is.”

But just as if to show otherwise, the front door shot open and the small dark-haired woman Thranduil recalled from the coffee shop ran outside. She stopped in front of them, breathing heavily. Thorin blinked to her a few times then gestured towards Thranduil.

“Dis, this is Thranduil, Thranduil this is Dis, my sister.”

She hold out his hand to him.

“Hi, nice to meet you. As much as I would like to get acquainted with the one Thorin told me so much about, I'm a bit in a rush right now. So, sorry and I hope I'll get to see you again sometime.”

Thranduil was shocked by both the speed at which she was talking and the words she was saying. _Thorin had told her about me? What did he said?_ He didn't got the chance to ask as she swiftly turned on her feet towards Thorin and pointed her finger to his face.

“You! Thank you so much for looking after the monsters tonight, I'm so grateful. I love you and please try to remember it's just for one night.”

She got on her toes and kissed his cheek quickly then turned around and walked towards the car that was parked in the alley.

“I'll be back as soon as I can. Try not to strangle any of them.”

She got in the car and got out of sight as fast as she had came in.

Thranduil watched her leave then turned towards Thorin.

“So … That was my sister. I'd like to say she's not usually like that but that happens too often.”

Thranduil laughed.

“She looks really nice.”

“She is.”

“And what about the 'monsters'?”

“They're not half as terrible as she made it sound. But I guess you'll find that out by yourself. Let's go inside.”

And so they entered the house, Thorin leading the way and Thranduil following. They turned to the living room where the TV was on and the two kids he had seen at the coffee shop were lying on the couch.

“Good evening.” Thorin greeted them and they got up to hug him with huge smiles on their faces.

“Uncle Thorin! Mom said you were looking after us tonight.”

“Yes, I am. That's why I brought my friend here.” He pointed to the other man standing awkwardly behind him. “His name is Thranduil and he proposed to help me with you two.” He ruffled one of the kids' hair and turned around.

“This is Kili and this is Fili.”

Thranduil made an effort to associate names and faces to avoid getting it wrong. It was quite easy since they were different, even though their link was obvious. Fili was a bit taller and blonde, Thranduil guessed he was the elder, and Kili was dark-haired and smaller. The three of them just smiled to each other then Thranduil raised his hand and told them “Hi!” Then Thorin spoke to him again.

“Hey, uh, I really have to take a shower. Would you mind staying alone with them a bit? I won't be long I promise.”

Thranduil smiled to him.

“That's what I came here for.” That wasn't exactly true but. “Take all the time you need.” And to emphasize his point he joined the two kids who had returned to the couch and sat beside them. Thorin smiled at the picture then disappeared upstairs.

“So what are you guys watching?”

“It's The Lion King.” Kili answered.

“Ah yes, it was always one of my favorites.”

That seemed to please them and they started to talk about the movie and a bunch of others that they all liked. Thranduil was never more happy of his knowledge about Disney movies that allowed him to keep the conversation going.

As Thorin was coming out of the bathroom he heard a loud burst of laughter coming from downstairs and he moved quietly to see what was happening. Apparently Thranduil had said or done something funny because both his nephews were laughing like crazy, Kili was even rolling on the ground holding his stomach.

“Having fun here?”

Thranduil promptly turned his head towards the voice and froze, eyes wide open. Thorin was standing in the doorway, hair dripping and with only a fluffy dark blue towel around his waist. Thranduil gulped and found it impossible to look away. His eyes followed a drop of water as it fell of Thorin's curls down his hairy torso, down his abs, to finish its way by disappearing on the towel. He desperately wanted to run to him, tackle him to the ground and trace the path of the drop with his mouth.

Thranduil was glad that his throat was so tighten that the moan he was about to let out at the thought wasn't heard. _For god's sakes there are children in the room!_ He turned his head to the kids again and took a few quick breaths. Thorin stepped into the room and watched the boys who had finally stopped laughing. He turned his head to Thranduil who was obviously trying hard not to look back.

“Wow, I leave you with them ten minutes and they're already on the ground?”

“I told you children like me.” he shrugged.

“Is that true?”

The question was directed to Kili and Fili who only nodded eagerly.

“Then you have no problem with staying with Thranduil while I try to prepare dinner?”

They shook their heads 'no' and Thranduil smiled to them. Then he felt a warm hand on his shoulder and he returned his attention to Thorin.

“Do you want something to drink or?”

Thranduil's throat was tight again at the sight and he only shook his head.

“Okay, well I'll be in the kitchen if you need anything.”

Again, he only nodded and watched him leave.

The boys had turned to the TV again so Thranduil started to watch with them. The movie was bringing so many childhood memories to his mind. He sat back and started playing mindlessly with his hair, lost in the images. When he got back to reality, two pairs of wondering eyes were looking at him. He watched them both curiously.

“What's going on? Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Your hair.” Fili stated as if it was an answer.

“What about it?”

He looked to the strands he was still holding. He had only started to braid it carelessly.

“Could you braid mine?” Kili looked up at him hopefully.

“Mine too?” Fili joined his brother.

Thranduil didn't really understand but agreed with a laugh. Kili immediately sat himself on his thighs, smiling brightly, and Thranduil got to work.

When Thorin got back – dressed this time – he laughed at the sight. Thranduil was braiding Fili's hair who was sitting on him and Kili was at his side, passing his fingers through Thranduil's long hair with a wondering look on his face. They all turned to him at the sound.

“What, are we a hairdressing salon now?”

They all laughed and Thranduil turned to him.

“I don't know exactly how that happened, they asked me to do it so I did.”

“He was braiding his own hair and it looked so pretty I wanted the same!” Kili explained to his uncle. “Maybe you should do it too.”

Thorin put Kili on his lap with a chuckle.

“Alright, go ahead.”

“Not me, it won't look as pretty. It should be Thranduil!”

The two exchanged an amused look.

“I'm not sure it's-”

But Thranduil interrupted him, smiling.

“I'll do it.”

Thorin seemed puzzled and surprised. Since he didn't move, Thranduil moved his legs and tapped the couch.

“Come here. Sit on the floor, it'll be easier.”

Thorin was still watching without moving so Fili walked to him and took his hand, dragging him behind then sitting him where Thranduil wanted. He smiled to him.

“Thank you, Fili. Do you want to help me with your uncle's hair?”

“No, Kili's right, it'll be prettier if it's you.”

“Okay.”

When Thranduil started to slip his fingers and Thorin's hair, the man tensed and stopped moving again. Thranduil wondered if he was even breathing.

“Are you okay?”

“Yes, why?” The answer came out a bit weirder than he expected.

“I don't know, you're all tense.”

“It's just – I'm sorry, it's just a bit strange.”

“It doesn't have to be.”

“What do you mean?”

“Things are only weird if you make them weird. Don't make this weird. Relax and enjoy, I'm just braiding your hair.”

Thorin tried to listen to the advice and leaned back slightly, back against the couch. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. The feeling was nice actually, once he got used to it. Thranduil's delicate fingers worked through his curls easily, which was surprising since Thorin knew it was often impossible to tame. He found himself so relaxed that he let his head rest on Thranduil's thigh. When he realized though, he straightened himself up and opened his eyes again, searching for his nephews. They were both sitting on the couch next to Thranduil and were watching his hands working. The voice of their uncle startled them.

“Fili, Kili, why don't you go upstairs and put on your pajamas before we eat?”

They nodded and ran up to their bedroom.

“Alright.” Thorin sighed as he moved to get up. But Thranduil put one hand on his shoulder and pushed him back down.

“I'm almost done.”

“You don't have to.”

“I want to.”

Silence fell between them as Thranduil worked with the last strands of hair. When he was finally finished, he dropped his hands on Thorin's shoulders with a sigh. “All done.” Thorin put his right hand over Thranduil's as they were both getting up then turned to face him.

“Hey, I just wanted to say, thank you for tonight.”

“You don't have to thank me it's a real pleasure. Besides, I wouldn't have done much all alone at my place. I should be the one thanking you, really.”

Thorin smiled and took a step forward.

“I'm just really glad you're here.”

And he squeezed the hand he was still holding.

Thranduil was a bit stunned at all that. He didn't know what to say so he only smiled back, but his heart was beating really fast in his chest. Then Tauriel's words came back to him. _Is this a sign she wasn't wrong? Is it time that I do something?_ He considered his options but without thinking his head had already approached Thorin's.

Then Fili and Kili crashed into the room and the moment, all giggles and screams, demanding all the attention. Thorin looked deep into Thranduil's eyes as if searching for the answer to an unasked question, then turned to his nephews, letting go of his hand.

“Alright, let's go set the table, okay?”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so just wanted to let you know that the hair braiding and The Lion King are shout outs to my wonderful friend and beta Erawmovid ! Love you Boo !


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone ! Here's the promised chapter :)  
> I don't know when the next one will be up because I don't have any already written and I don't know when I will get the time to write. I'll try to do my best :)

They moved to the kitchen where the started to set the table. A dish of pasta that actually smelled really good was served. Fili and Kili sat next to each other at one side of the table, so Thorin gestured to Thranduil to take the seat next to him with a bright smile. The meal went by pretty fast. They were all chattering about everything and nothing, Thranduil asked the kids about school and they asked about his hair again. Apparently, Thorin was shocked to learn it was all natural, if the gasp that left his mouth when he told them was anything to go by. Thranduil expressed his own surprise at Thorin's cooking which wasn't as bad as he had imagined. Thorin took it as a compliment. During all the meal, each one stole glances when they thought the other one wasn't looking.

When they finished, Thorin refused any help from Thranduil to clear the table who just stood there watching the family work together. Kili and Fili seemed eager to help their uncle and it made Thranduil's heart melt.

“Alright, time to go to bed!”

They desperately tried to gain some time, pouting and pleading their uncle to let them stay up a bit more but Thorin just lead them to the stairs. He turned to Thranduil with an amused smile.

“I'll just put them to bed, don't disappear before I come back.”

Then they disappeared upstairs.

Thranduil was left alone and started to wander around a bit, taking in everything he hadn't before. Against one of the walls was a small desk covered in architectural drawings and catalogs and other paperwork. He caught sight of some framed pictures of the family (with some people he knew and some others he had never seen before). He picked up one that was standing on a shelf and took a closer look. On the picture was Thorin, smiling brightly, his arm around another man's waist who was kissing his cheek. He put it back where he found it and tried not to over-think about it and kept on looking around.

There was also a huge bookcase he couldn't believe he had missed. Then again, he had been a little bit distracted. His eyes scanned the titles. There was a lot of different books, going from classic literature to children books. He grabbed one that seemed to be about arts and started to look through it.

“Found something you like?”

Thorin was standing a few feet away, watching him with a small smile. _Gosh, this man is always smiling, isn't he?_ Thranduil put the book back.

“I was just looking around while waiting, sorry.”

“Don't be sorry, you were right to. So, what do you want to do until Dis comes back? We could talk or watch TV or I don't know..”

“TV sounds great.”

“Good. Just pick something, I'll be right back.”

Thranduil passed through the channels but nothing really caught his attention. It didn't matter though, he decided, they could still talk over whatever was on right now. Or if not, he still had something interesting to watch that wasn't on the screen, he joked to himself.

Thorin got back with a bottle of red wine and two glasses and set them on the coffee table.

“I don't know if you like wine, I could get something else if you want.”

“No, no, I really love wine actually, it's perfect.”

Thorin smiled back at him and poured the liquid into the glasses before sitting on the couch next to Thranduil. He was close, but not as close as Thranduil wished him to be

“Have you found something?”

“Not really.”

“There's never anything on TV anyway.”

“It's alright, we can just talk.”

He turned to face Thorin and sat more comfortably, leaning his head on the couch. Thorin watched the now exposed pale skin of his throat.

“What do you want to talk about?”

“I still don't get why you're afraid of looking after your nephews. You're obviously really good with them.”

“Well, I don't know either. Maybe it's just because of the shitty parenting I got.”

“Yeah, I know what that is.”

“Sorry to hear that.”

“Don't be sorry, it's not your fault my parents are crap.”

He took a sip from his glass again then set it aside.

“So, how come you're living with them now?”

“Long story short, Dis' husband went nuts and set fire to their house and they lost everything. She didn't know what to do so she came to me for help and, well, I helped her. It's been almost a year and a half but we just got comfortable living here together.”

“Were you living alone before that?”

“Hum, no actually. I was living with someone else here.”

The same sad look Thranduil had seen before on Thorin's face passed and he quickly regretted asking.

“I'm sorry, I don't want to bother you with my questions. You don't have to answer if you don't want to.”

“No don't worry, it's just- It still hurts to think about it.”

Even though Thranduil had now a hundred and a half questions in his mind he kept them in and let Thorin take his time and decide by himself if he wanted to talk about it. When he raised his head again, he had a smile on his lips but it was a sad one and it just broke Thranduil's heart further.

“It's not a happy story.”

“I think I can handle it.”

Thranduil hesitated but grabbed Thorin's hand and squeezed it slightly. Thorin took another sip of his drink before starting.

“A few years ago, I met this cute guy named Bilbo. He was really nice, and smart, and he made me laugh. I loved him. It actually lasted for a while and we passed all the steps. A year ago, we were living here together, we were engaged and really happy. Well, I was. A few months after Dis moved in, he decided to leave. Told me that he loved me but that he wasn't as happy as he thought he would be. Told me that 'this' wasn't for him, that he needed adventure. And he left. That's probably one of the reasons Dis and my nephews stayed here. I think I needed the support as much as they did.”

Thranduil didn't really know what to say. He wasn't surprised that this was about another man. And he remembered the picture he had seen, Thorin looked so happy. He couldn't believe that he had been engaged. And he couldn't believe someone could just leave him. He surely wouldn't if he had Thorin. That Bilbo had been really stupid and probably regretted his decision by now. Thranduil gave another squeeze at Thorin's hand and smiled back.

“Well, I think Bilbo isn't that smart if he decided to leave you behind for some adventure.”

“That's nice. Thank you. But enough talk about me, let's talk about you.”

Thranduil shrugged.

“What do you want to know?”

Everything. Thorin wanted to know everything about the guy that had fascinated him since they first met and just kept getting under his skin. But for now, he just settled for something simple.

“You mentioned your bad parenting earlier, so what about it?”

“Well, you met my father. The thing is, I don't really get how he works.” Thorin laughed. “No really, it's just, sometimes he's really nice and gentle but sometimes it's like he doesn't even care about me. I don't know what I can and can't do with him and it's frustrating. So, I just did the best I can since I was little. Got good grades, never got into trouble. Maybe that's not what I should've done, maybe I should've smoked and get drunk and hung out with thugs and rob and stuff...”

Thorin laughed again. “Maybe.”

“It's not all bad though, I get to be independent and he makes really good choices sometimes.”

Thranduil looked into Thorin eyes with a grin.

“Like what?”

“Like hiring you.”

Thorin chuckled and refilled their glasses.

“And what about your mother?”

“My mother's named Lothiriel, she's really pretty and smart and always nice to everyone. Everybody loves her. My father told me once that I reminded him of her a lot. I'm not so sure about that. She left my dad when I was eight, I think. She moved to the other side of the country and I only see her a few times each year. I'm visiting her next week actually.”

“She seems nice.”

“She really is.”

 

They kept on chatting for about half an hour until they heard the door opening. They both turned their heads as Dis entered the house.

“Hey.” Thorin greeted her.

“Hey guys.”

She joined them on the couch, sitting next to them and only then did they both realized that they had moved closer to each other during their conversation, their knees brushing against each other.

“The boys didn't bother you too much, I hope?”

“Don't worry, they were as good as always.”

“Great. Well, I'm sorry but I'll leave you two and go to sleep now.” She yawned and got up, kissing Thorin's cheek. “Goodnight.” Then to his surprise, she kissed Thranduil's too. “See you soon I hope.” And smiled at him before disappearing upstairs.

Thranduil checked the time on his phone then sighed.

“I should probably get going, it's getting late.”

“Of course, let me grab my keys.”

“No, no, don't worry I can walk back.”

“Nonsense, I'm driving you back home, no questions.”

When they opened the front door, the chilly night air met them and Thranduil shivered. Thorin immediately grabbed his jacket and offered it to Thranduil who welcomed the gesture.

The drive back was mostly silent, and really shorter than earlier, but Thranduil thought it was maybe because he was half asleep. When Thorin stopped the car in front of his house, Thranduil turned to him with a smile. The other was already watching him.

“Thank you for tonight, it was really nice.”

“Yes, we should definitely do it again. Over a proper dinner maybe?”

Thranduil blinked a few times and wondered if his mind was playing tricks or if Thorin was actually asking him out.

“That would be great.”

“Well I'll see you tomorrow then.”

“Sure, goodnight Thorin.”

“Goodnight Thranduil.”

Thranduil quickly pressed a kiss on Thorin's cheek then slipped out of the car. He didn't look back but knew that Thorin hadn't drove off until he had closed the door behind him. A voice suddenly startled him.

“What are you smiling about?”

“Nothing.”

Thranduil looked up to his father but couldn't shake the smile off his face.

“Where were you?”

“I texted you to tell you I was going out.”

“Do you want something to eat?”

“No, I already ate, thank you. I'm just gonna go to bed.”

And he climbed up the stairs two steps at a time then closed his bedroom door behind him. He took his shoes off and jumped on his bed, pulling out his phone to write a text to Tauriel. Surely she wouldn't mind the late hour? “ _I think Thorin just asked me out. I don't know how to react. I think you were right._ ” He could see he was maybe overreacting to all of this but he could feel his crush just getting bigger and bigger everytime he so much as thought about the man. And now Thorin showed interest in him too?

Thranduil changed to his nightwear and fell asleep with a huge grin on his face before he even got an answer from Tauriel.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also, don't pay attention to Thranduil's mother's name, I choose one at random in a list of elvish names !


	8. Chapter 8

When Thranduil opened his eyes the next morning, he heard that there was noise coming from downstairs and guessed that Thorin and his crew were already here and working. He reached for his phone on the nightstand to look at the time and was surprised to find two missed calls and six new texts from Tauriel. Thranduil smiled while reading them. She was asking him what had happened and basically telling him to call her back as soon as he could. He put his phone down on the bed and sat up. It was already 10 so he decided that he'd get prepared before calling her, she could wait a bit longer. He went in the bathroom to take a shower. By the time he was dressed and everything, it was 10:45. He sat back on his bed and grabbed his phone, Tauriel answered at the third ring.

“Hello?”

“Hi Tauriel, how are you?”

“Well, I'm fine and I guess you are too.”

“Even more than fine.”

“I bet! So, tell me everything, what happened?”

Thranduil explained to Tauriel how he had ended up looking after Thorin's nephews with him and all that happened during the evening. She was just listening and making some 'mm' noises once in a while to show she was still on the other end. He told her about their conversation but didn't get into details because it just didn't feel right to talk about Thorin's story.

“Then he drove me home and that's when he said it.”

“But what did he say exactly?”

“I thanked him for the night and he said that we should do it again, maybe over a proper dinner. He was asking for a date right? It's not just me?”

“No, it's not just you, I think he was asking you out.”

Thranduil sighed in relief. For a moment, as he was saying everything at loud, it didn't seem like a big deal and he thought that maybe he has misinterpreted.

“But the question is what's gonna happen next. Are you going to do anything?”

That's a question he didn't really had an answer to. Sure now he was almost sure that Thorin was interested in him, but 'almost' wasn't enough. And even now, he didn't know what Thorin was looking for. All these doubts and questions didn't help him to know what he was supposed to do.

“Should I do something?”

“You can try to make sure he was serious when he asked.”

“And how do I do that?”

“Try to bring the subject casually.”

It was easier said than done. Doing things 'casually' was apparently impossible for him when he was around the handsome architect. Thranduil thanked Tauriel for her advices anyway and after a bit more of chit-chat they hung up, but not before Tauriel made him promise to keep her up on the whole thing with Thorin.

When Thranduil finally came downstairs it was almost midday, and Thorin greeted him with a big smile.

“Hey, I thought you weren't home.”

“No I just overslept a bit.” He chuckled. “Hi everyone.”

They all answered and got back to work.

“Working hard I see.”

“Yes, we're trying to get as much done as possible. Your father told us that he wanted the kitchen ready for Friday if possible, so we're trying to.”

“For Friday? Isn't that a bit short?”

“Well, I think we can do it. But that's gonna require long days and I won't be able to work on your bedroom like I said I would, sorry.”

“No, don't apologize, I understand. We can figure that out after.”

Thranduil was a bit sadden. He was really looking forward to finally get the changes done but, well, his father had asked Thorin for the impossible so he guessed it made sense. Still, he made a mental note to ask his father what it was about, why he was suddenly in such a rush. Then the door bell rang and Thranduil went to open the door to...

“Dis?”

“Good morning!”

“What are you doing here?”

“Sorry, I don't want to disturb you, I just wanted to bring lunch to Thorin and the boys.”

She raised a plastic bag to show Thranduil.

“Come in.”

He got out of the way and led her to the kitchen. When she entered, the four men cheered. Then Thorin turned to Thranduil.

“I hope it's okay, I asked her to bring us food because I didn't want to waste any time.”

“No, there's no problem.”

"Do you wanna join us?"

"I don't wanna bother you, stay between friends."

"You're not gonna bother them, right Thorin? Come on, I'm staying too!"

And she sat on the couch, patting at her side. Thranduil laughed and joined her. The four other men sat all around the table as Dis was taking out the food. Thranduil grabbed something which he wasn't sure of the nature but that looked tasty.

"So Thrandy - you don't mind me calling you Thrandy right?"

He looked at her wide eyed. No one had ever called him that besides his mother when he was little. He guess he didn't mind. He smiled and shook his head.

"Great, I wanted to thank you about last night. I'm not sure why exactly you were there..." She cast a look at Thorin who just looked away. "But still, thank you."

"You don't need to thank me, it was a pleasure really. Your kids are so nice."

"Yes, I bet they were with you. What about Thorin?"

Thranduil turned to her with a questioning look.

"What do you mean?"

"Was he nice too?"

Thranduil looked at Thorin who looked amused and only shrugged his shoulders.

"Yes, he was really nice."

Dis shoved another fork in his mouth and added.

"He's single you know."

Thorin coughed loudly and looked at his sister I'm shock. _What the hell?_ Dis only ignored him.

"How old are you exactly?"

Thranduil couldn't believe it. Was she trying to set him up with her brother?

"I'm nineteen."

"Ah yes, it's a bit young for him but I think that could work out."

 _WHAT THE HELL?_ Thorin watched each of his friends who were trying to hide their grins in their food. Then his eyes met Thranduil's. He had a small smile on his lips and a faint blush on his cheeks. Thorin coughed again but Dis went on.

"You know he really is great once you get past the grumpy appearance and all of that."

"I never thought he looked grumpy."

"Well, clearly you haven't seen him when he wakes up."

Thranduil laughed and could only think about how much he would like that. Thorin sank in the armchair he was sitting on. He was starting to think about ways to shut Dis up but thankfully, she seemed to be done with her awkward talk. They finished eating while Dis was still babbling about one thing or another. Seriously, Thorin wondered how she could've ate anything since it seemed she hadn't stopped talking once. He was grateful though, because he didn't know if he would've been able to keep the conversation going like she did. She was so talkative that it was a natural thing for her. That's why she was always the one to do the talking ever since they were children.

When she decided that she'd leave so the men could get back to work, she planted kisses on everyone's cheeks. Then Thorin walked her out of the house but not without giving her a look that let her know there would be a conversation tonight. Dis only winked at him and left smiling to herself. Thorin shook his head and got back inside.

 

The rest of the day passed in a blur. Thorin was just focused on the work and getting the maximum done. It surely helped that Thranduil had decided it was best to let them work and had been in his room all the afternoon. That way, Thorin wasn't tempted to look back over his shoulder every ten minutes to watch the younger man. Still, when it was around 8p.m. And they had decided to call it a day, Thorin went upstairs and knocked on Thranduil's bedroom door. He told him that he was leaving and would be back early tomorrow morning.

He was really exhausted. It had been a while since he had worked that hard and that long in a day. His muscles were tired and he felt like he might fall asleep on the steering wheel, so he put the radio loud enough to keep him awake until he reached home.

When he arrived, he took his shoes off and went straight for the bathroom. When he got out of the shower, he almost went to his bedroom but then he remembered what had happened at lunch and his silent promise of a conversation.

He found Dis sitting in the couch with a glass of wine and a book. He grabbed a glass for himself and filled it before settling down next to her.

“So, you're gonna tell me what all this was for?”

She looked up and took her glasses off, closing the book and putting it aside. With a calm voice she asked: “What are you talking about?”

Thorin could have believed her if it wasn't for the sneaky smile that was on her face.

“You know damn well what I'm talking about. What you did at lunch. With Thranduil.”

“Oh, that. Well, what about it?”

“Come on Dis! I was so uncomfortable! I didn't know what to do! Why did you do that?”

“Because you weren't doing anything!”

“Wha-”

“Oh, come on Thorin! Don't act like you don't know what is happening! You like him and he seems to like you too so I just tried to give a little push to you two. Make you realize that you're both standing there like two idiots when it's obvious you want more.”

“I don't-”

“Ugh, shut up if you're gonna say it's not true. You know I'm right.”

Silence fell as Thorin took time to think for a while. He didn't know what to say. But then, he didn't have to think about what to say when it was with Dis, so he just went with it.

“Okay, I admit, I like him. But that doesn't mean it's gonna lead to anything.”

“What are you talking about, he likes you too.”

“Maybe, but he's smart. And he's young and will be successful for sure and I think he knows that it's not the smartest move to settle with someone like me. I mean, come on, why would he want someone like me at all!”

“You're an idiot. Everyone would be lucky to be with someone like you, and you know that. And Thranduil probably knows that too. Maybe that's even the reason he doesn't make a move, and in that case, like I said, you're both standing there like two idiots thinking they're not good enough for the other one.”

“He doesn't think he's not good enough, have you seen him? He's freaking gorgeous and he's talented, smart and funny. You can ask the kids.”

“But have you even thought that he could be thinking the same?”

“It doesn't matter. Even if he does, he's the son of my client and that would be a conflict of interests, so...”

Thorin knew that his argument was  crap, and he knew that Dis knew it and that she was right but still, he wasn't going to admit that. Plus, he was definitely too tired to take any kind of decision right now and had to get up early tomorrow, so he just decided to try to ignore the part of his brain that was processing all that was said in their conversation and go to sleep.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so obviously here, Dis is everyone of us pushing them together :P  
> Anyway, hope you liked it!  
> Still don't know when the next chapter will be up but I know that things are speeding up a bit after this?  
> Thank you for reading!


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so first of all, I am so so sorry about the long break but a shitton of things happened during the last two weeks and I couldn't really do anything about it so yeah, sorry about that :/  
> I hope you don't hold it against me too much? I still love you all, you're so amazing really!  
> Anyway, here's the chapter which is a bit longer (about 900 words) than the ones I've posted before.

 

The next day went by pretty much the same way, Dis and Thranduil joined the crew for lunch after an already long morning of work. This time, Dis didn't have an awkward conversation with Thranduil but made a point to have him sit next to Thorin on the couch. Thranduil found that he really liked to spend time with all of them. He felt as if he was with friends and it felt good.

Since his father had told him he wouldn't be here to open the house to Thorin on Thursday morning, Thranduil had got up early. He was already prepared and waiting for everyone when the door bell rang. He opened to Thorin and let him in.

“Good morning, you're up early.”

“Yes, my father couldn't be here this morning so I was the one in charge to open for you.”

“Ah, I see.”

Thorin's phone biped and he took it out of his back pocket. It was a text from Dwalin who told him he had overslept so they would be late. Dwalin was the one who picked up Nori and Bifur everyday so they wouldn't have to take their own car. Thorin sighed and typed a quick answer.

“Is there something wrong?”

Thranduil had been making himself a coffee and was taking out a box of scones that his father had bought yesterday.

“No, it's just that Dwalin overslept so they're gonna be late.”

“Do you want a coffee while you wait? I also have some scones..”

“Yes, thank you. I didn't eat this morning, I thought I didn't have the time. Guess that I did actually.”

“Well, now you get to share your breakfast with me.”

They settled in the living room and Thranduil gave Thorin his cup of coffee then sat next to him.

“Oh, sorry, I didn't even asked you how you wanted it. I can do it another one if you want.”

He was already up and ready to prepare another cup but Thorin stopped him.

“Is it black?”

“Yes.”

“Then that's exactly what I need, thank you.”

Thranduil sat back and gave him a small smile.

“I'm so sorry about the crazy schedule you're forced to have with that new deadline.”

“Yes, it's a bit hard, guess that's why Dwalin overslept, but it's worth it.”

“Ah yes, I imagine my father made sure you'd get paid more.”

“He made me understand that he'd pay for the trouble.”

“He always does. Really, don't feel bad if you wanna ask for more than necessary, he will give you what you want.”

“Yeah, I understood that money wasn't a problem when I saw what your father wanted for the kitchen. That marble for the counter tops is crazy expensive.”

“My father is a lawyer, he gets paid a lot. Then he spends that money into things he can show off to his 'friends', like he will do on Friday.”

“Friday?”

“Oh yes, I asked my father why he wanted you to finish for Friday, it's because he's hosting a party here for his birthday. Gonna invite all his other rich friends and show that he's one of them with his brand new expensive kitchen. It's gonna be hell.”

“I take it you don't like that.”

“It's a nightmare! All those businessmen walking around, bowing and scraping at each other. And they're all taking their top-of-the-class spoiled children with them, so I have to be there too and make conversation. It's awful.”

“I'm sorry you have to endure that.”

“It would be so much easier if someone was there with me. I asked Tauriel but she's on a date night with her man.”

Thranduil suddenly had a thought and turned to face Thorin with wide eyes.

“Hey! Could you?”

“What?”

“Could you come to the party? I don't think my father would be against the idea. Plus, it would make sense since you're the one who did the kitchen.”

Thranduil realized that maybe he had hoped too much. Thorin probably didn't want to go to a stupid rich birthday party. He had no reason to. He lowered his head and sipped at his coffee.

“You don't have to of course, it's just - It would be great to have you with me."

Thorin only smiled back at him.

"Sure, I can come."

Thranduil made a sound between a scream and a laugh that didn't seem human at all, and hugged Thorin.   
Thorin was shocked at first but when he realized that he had Thranduil in his arms he put his arms around him and hugged tighter.   
Then the door bell rang again and Thranduil broke the hug with a smile and got up to open for the crew. He greeted them all then moved to clear the table. Thorin joined him and helped.

“Thank you for the breakfast.”

“You're welcome. Well, guess you better get to work then. See you later.”

Thranduil rushed to his room and closed the door behind him, smiling to himself. Suddenly, the party didn't seem like a nightmare anymore.

 

The final days had been just as crazy as the rest of the week. Thorin (and all the crew really) was exhausted but glad that they had finished in time. Sure, there were some things that hadn't go as planned and he would have to work some more on it, but the kitchen was more than presentable.

Oropher had seemed satisfied and had told Thorin that he could take a well deserved break. Thorin agreed.

Friday morning was basically about cleaning the mess and putting some screws here and there. Thorin was surprised that, for once, Thranduil wasn't here but his father was.   
When Thorin left, Oropher told him that he hoped he would see him tonight. He guessed that Thranduil had told his father about the invitation.

Thranduil had decided to go shopping on Friday morning to find an outfit for tonight. Even though he already had a ton of clothes, he enjoyed having an excuse to buy new ones. He had to find something that looked a bit formal but that wasn't a suit like all the old businessmen would be wearing.   
Finally, he bought a pair of tight black pants and a new light brown blazer that he would wear with a white shirt. Classic but not entirely formal.  
Thranduil knew that everyone who would be there were arrogant and judgmental pricks. He didn't mind though because he liked to dress up and take care of himself. And just like he had an excuse to go shopping, he had an excuse to spend hours in the bathroom getting ready.  
He took a really long shower and took the time to brush his hair and everything.   
He wasn't sure what to do with it, he should probably tie it back but it looked good just falling around his face. He had the luck to have naturally straight hair that didn't knot much. He shrugged and decided to leave it like this, only brushing it back.

 

 

The amount of effort his father had put in this party was, as usual, huge even though completely unnecessary. He had ordered the most expensive alcohols and food and had even hired a girl as a waitress for the evening. Thranduil had talked to her a bit before people had started to arrive. She was 19 too, named Sigrid and seemed really nice. She had explained to him that she wanted to make the money for her family, to relieve a bit her father who was already juggling with multiple jobs.

But now, she was walking around people, handing them drinks and food and smiling brightly even though Thranduil knew that they pissed her off as much as they did him. There was maybe around thirty people gathered in the house and it was really too much for both of them. When Sigrid wasn't responding to someone's request, Thranduil tried to talk with her. And even though their conversation was constantly interrupted, it was still better than the ones he would have with anyone else in the room.

That is, until Thorin arrived.

His father was the one to answer the door but as soon as Thranduil heard his voice, he made his way through the crowd to the hall.

“You came!”

“Of course I did, I told you I would.”

Thranduil was aware of his father standing next to them but that didn't stop him from hugging Thorin quickly before leading him further inside. He was glad Oropher didn't follow them and seemed to go back to his conversation with a man that Thranduil recalled was named Elrond.

Sigrid came to them shortly after and asked Thorin if he wanted anything.

“Can I have a whiskey, please?”

“Sure, I'll be right back.”

“There's no emergency, don't rush.”

She seemed pleased that at least someone was a bit considerate and smiled back to him.

Thranduil had used the time of their exchange to look at Thorin properly. He looked absolutely handsome, dressed all in black with a v-neck tee-shirt and a blazer much like Thranduil's, his hair untied, long dark curls falling on his shoulders.

Of course, Thorin noticed Thranduil's appreciative stare and couldn't be more glad that he had asked Dis' advice for his outfit.

Since there weren't any free seats left, Thranduil led Thorin to the stairs and sat down the steps.

“Sorry I can't offer you a proper seat.”

“Don't worry about that.”

Thorin sat down next to him as Sigrid returned with his drink. She politely asked if he wanted anything else but he only shook his head and thanked her again. She nodded then walked back to the center of the room. Thranduil sighed.

“I feel a bit sorry for her, they're not letting her breathe since it started.”

“Has it been long? I know I'm a bit late..”

“Don't worry they were all here early.”

Thorin laughed then took a sip of his drink and looked around the room.

“So you weren't kidding, it's only businessmen here.”

“Ugh, yes. I'm glad my dad finally gave up trying to integrate me to the conversations.”

“Is it that awful?”

“Basically it's either them talking business while I'm standing there like an idiot, or my dad showing me off and talking about how great I am while I'm standing there like an idiot. So, either way, I'm looking like an idiot.”

“So which one is the worse?”

“Definitely when he's talking about me.”

“You don't seem like the kind of guy that likes to be ignored though.”

“I don't like it but I prefer that than the other option. My dad even tried to set me up with a friend's daughter once. It was awful.”

Thorin frowned at that.

“Doesn't your father know about your sexuality?”

Thranduil ran a hand through his hair and sighed.

“No, he doesn't know. It's just – We never talked about it, you know? It never seemed right to bring up the subject. I told you, it's a bit difficult with my father. My mother knows, though, I don't know why it was simple to tell her.”

“It's often like that. It was the same for me I told my mother first and my father after. She kinda knew it already, so she wasn't surprised. And then she started trying to set me up with every guy she met, it was crazy. She became obsessed with finding the perfect person for me.”

Thranduil laughed.

“She gave up eventually, got tired of hearing that they weren't my type.”

“So what's your type? Like, theoretically speaking, what are you looking for?”

“Someone smart and trustworthy, funny I guess, probably that cares about family like I do.”

“Sounds about right.”

“What about you?”

“Yeah, I think someone smart and funny. Also, someone that's passionate about something, I always liked that. And it seems like a prefer brunets too.”

“Oh, really?”

Oropher cleared his throat and Thranduil wondered how he hadn't noticed that his father was standing in front of them.

“M. Oakenshield, I'd like to introduce you to some people, would you mind?”

“Of course not.”

Thorin got on his feet and followed him. Thranduil got up too to fetch himself a drink and check on Sigrid. She seemed to be doing fine, walking around more easily now that she knew the place and people's preferences.

Thranduil returned to his spot at the stairs but Thorin still wasn't there. He waited for about half an hour but since Thorin didn't seem to be coming back soon, he decided to go upstairs to his room and start packing.

He was leaving tomorrow morning to visit his mother and didn't want to rush just before he left. He grabbed a suitcase and started to stuff random clothes in it, trying to think of all the things he would have to add at the last minute. He started to make a list for that because he was almost sure he would forget something and realize too late. He tried to take a small amount of clothes, because he would only be gone for a week and he knew he would probably go shopping with his mother like every time he visited, and his father always told him he took way too much clothes. The problem was that when he couldn't decide what to take, he took all.

A while later, he heard steps of someone coming upstairs followed by Thorin's voice calling his name. Thranduil smiled and answered.

“I'm in my room!”

Thorin came in seconds later.

“Hey, sorry I kept you waiting, your father introduced me to … everyone I think.”

“Sorry you had to do that.”

Thorin stepped closer and stopped next to the suitcase on the bed, he was frowning when he looked back at Thranduil who was searching for a specific shirt.

“You're leaving?”

“Yes, I'm visiting my mother I told you a few days ago.”

“Right, I forgot. How long are you going?”

Thranduil walked to him and put his hand on Thorin's shoulder.

“Don't worry, you won't have the time to miss me. I'm going for a week. I'll be back next Saturday.”

A week was quite long to Thorin's eyes and he was pretty sure that he would have plenty of time to miss him. Still, he smiled to Thranduil who kept filling his suitcase

 

Oropher came looking for them after a few minutes, asking for Thranduil to come with him. What he had dreaded all night was eventually happening and his father introduced him to another friend's son with whom he was forced to make conversation. The guy was, as expected, completely full of himself and absolutely boring and Thranduil just wanted to slap him but he restrained himself and tried to keep the conversation going, even though his thoughts were completely on the man standing across the room with whom he exchanged a few glances and smiles.

The rest of the evening went by pretty smoothly. Thranduil had successfully escaped the boring guy and joined Thorin who was talking to Sigrid. He tried to stay with them and not run into anyone else for the rest of the night.

 

It wasn't too late when the first persons started to leave, excusing themselves and thanking Oropher. Thranduil was glad because he'd have to get up quite early the next morning to catch his flight. Soon, the house was almost empty and it was Thorin who decided to take his leave. Thranduil didn't want to let him go, especially since he knew he wouldn't see the man for another week, so he tried to make it last as much as he could, slowly walking him back to the door.

“Thank you for coming tonight, I really appreciate it.”

“It was quite nice.”

“Yeah, if you forget all the other people.”

Thorin laughed, he couldn't say how much he agreed.

“So, I don't know when I'll see you again.”

“Are you still working this week?”

“No, your father told me to take a break.”

“Oh, okay. Well, I hope I'll see you when I come back.”

“I hope so too.”

“Goodbye.”

Thranduil leaned to kiss Thorin's cheek like he had last time, but then Thorin did the unexpected. He turned his head slightly so that Thranduil's lips didn't meet his cheek but his own lips. He wondered for an instant why he had done that, knew he couldn't blame it on the alcohol, but every thought completely disappeared as soon as their lips touched. It wasn't a big kiss, just a mere press of flesh that didn't last long, but when Thorin pulled back and looked into Thranduil's eyes, he knew that it was right. He smiled and whispered “Goodbye” in response to Thranduil before walking back to his car. He stopped and looked back to see the other man standing at the same spot, mouth hanging open as he watched him. He smiled to himself, then got into the car and drove away.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you liked it :)  
> I'm sorry to say that the next chapter won't be up before at least two weeks because I'm leaving this weekend for a school trip to Italy.  
> Thank you all for sticking up with me!


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